This application is related to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/168,198 filed on Jun. 24, 2011 and assigned to the same assignee as the instant application.
Security systems are well known. In the case of a home, a security system is usually controlled from a panel placed proximate an exit to the home. In this case, the proximity to the exit is intended to make it convenient for a homeowner to arm or disarm the system via the control panel as he/she exits or enters the home.
Once armed, the control panel may monitor the sensors placed on a periphery of the home in order to detect an intruder opening a door or window. Upon detecting an intruder, the control panel may send an alarm message to a central monitoring station.
In addition to detecting intruders along the periphery, one or more interior sensors may have a motion detection capability to detect intruders who have defeated the door or window sensors. The majority of these interior sensors rely on changes in infrared energy in the room, Passive Infrared (PIR) sensors, or a combination of PIR and microwave Doppler shift (known as Dual Tecs) sensors. However, motion detection devices can generate false alarms when the homeowner has a pet. Accordingly, a need exists for better methods of detecting motion that avoid the problem of false alarms due to the presence of pets.